Apparently I was a third prize winner in the Australian version of the Da Vinci Code Quest that Google ran recently. I arrived home today to find a large-ish black bag with rope handles – like a cheap version of the type you get in swanky stores – stuffed into our letterbox. Upon opening it I found a copy of the ‘Da Vinci Code’ book, and a number of other bits and pieces all with Da Vinci Code logos on them, as you can see in this photo:

From left to right, back to front (and with the bag it came in behind them) they are:

• a leather folio/organiser type of thing – like a purse for a man
• a combination luggae padlock
• a little notebook in a metal casing
• a copy of the Da Vinci Code novel
• a little keyring flashlight with batteries
• a globe-shaped puzzle (called, interestingly enough, a global puzzle)
• a Da Vinci Code-branded disposable camera

Now, I’m mildly interested in reading the book, since I’ve never read it before, and the puzzle is kind of interesting – but it’s all really a bit tacky. I couldn’t decide at first if I had really won something or whether they just sent this to everyone who completed the Google competition puzzles, since there was no letter or explanation with the package. After a bit of Googling (how ironic) I found some references that said that in Australia there would be 30 third prize Da Vinci Code travel packs – so it looks like I’ve won one of those. I’m not sure what to do with it all now – give it away, keep it, sell it on eBay.

Any suggestions?